


Pumpkins and Magic

by redyarns



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Draco is a magical farmer, Fluff, M/M, Podfic Welcome, Post-War, Slow Burn, and Harry is depressed and overworked, and draco has to reluctantly help him, basically harry is sent to the middle of nowhere, because hermione granger is a scary witch, canonverse, draco likes pumpkins, from enemies to friends to lovers, harry is a workaholic and needs to slow down, harry is shocked, harry is smitten, hermione and ron are also draco's friends, it's been ten years since the war, neville and draco are friends, so is draco though
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-18
Updated: 2019-09-18
Packaged: 2020-10-20 22:33:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20683019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redyarns/pseuds/redyarns
Summary: “A what?”“A vacation,” Hermione said serenely, like she hadn’t just dropped the biggest bomb on him in the worst way possible. She smiled when he scowled deeply at her, and there was a knowing look in her eyes while she tapped her quill quietly against her parchment. He decided to glare at the damned thing - he hated that quill, it was the eagle-feather one that she only used on official documents, just like the one she had just finished signing to send him on his…vacation.“I don’t need a vacation,” he immediately rejected."Yes, you do.""No, Hermione, I really, really don't."





	Pumpkins and Magic

“A _ what?_” 

“A vacation,” Hermione said serenely, like she hadn’t just dropped the biggest bomb on him in the worst way possible. She smiled when he scowled deeply at her, and there was a knowing look in her eyes while she tapped her quill quietly against her parchment. He decided to glare at the damned thing - he _ hated _ that quill, it was the eagle-feather one that she only used on official documents, just like the one she had just finished signing to send him on his… _ vacation. _

“I don’t need a vacation,” he said, and he felt a little embarrassed at such a weak comeback. One would think after over two decades of being friends with Hermione Granger would make them impervious to her pulling her whole _ scary-witch-boss _ act, but there she sat in the Mistress of Magic’s office seat, like she didn’t fit anywhere as much. There was an intimidating smile on her face, one that had him hesitating, because if Voldemort had faced her _ don’t argue with me face, _ Harry would have guaranteed the man would have surrendered immediately. 

“Of course you don’t,” she said in a sympathetic tone, and he exploded. 

“I don’t need a vacation!” He said again, pacing left and right in front of her desk, mentally patting himself on the back for at least putting more force into the sentence. “I’m the best Auror on the force, Hermione, _ you literally gave me the employee of the month award last week!_” 

“Harry - “ 

“And - and - who’s going to watch Teddy? You know he doesn’t like it if I’m not there by nine-thirty on Fridays, and he likes the curry from that Indian place two blocks away from our place, but with exactly _ two teaspoons _of chilli, not the usual one - “ 

“_Harry - _“ 

“And the case!” Harry practically shouted by this point, feeling a little like a madman, even turning on his heel to point at his boss and slash best friend. “The Braxton case, I’m so _ close, _ I swear, Hermione, I’m like two centimeters away from catching the bloody idiot and tossing him into Azkaban. I don’t need a vacation - “ 

“This,” Hermione said calmly, putting her wand away while Harry opened and closed his mouth in anger at the strong _ silencio _that was placed over him. She merely laughed at the rude gesture he made with his hand, and continued to say, “is exactly why you need a vacation. First of all - Harry, I gave you that award because you have the most amount of hours at office than anyone else.” 

She paused. 

“_Combined._” 

He made a “_so?_” motion. 

She sighed, made another wave of her wand, and a set of tea cups and a pot popped into the air. While they poured steaming tea, he sat down again, feeling a little defeated when he took a cup and saucer while mouthing a thanks. When he took a sip, he let out a silent snort, recognizing the sharp taste of black tea that McGonagall had been so fond of, and Hermione smiled when she conjured up a plate of gingersnaps. 

When he bit into one, she continued. “You’re working too hard, Harry. And yes, I know, I always say hard work is appreciated, but not to the point that you drool all over your weekly reports.” 

Harry took a sip, feeling his embarrassment reach all the way up to his ears at the pointed look she gave him. Okay, so maybe that did happen, but in all honesty, he didn’t think it was his fault. That week had been particularly taxing, what with the fight he had with Teddy over whether or not they should get Chinese for dinner, the emergency babysitting he had to do with Rose and Hugo because both Ron and Hermione had an urgent mission, and also because he was just so bloody tired all the time. 

“_Also,_” Hermione said, capturing his attention once more. She tapped the calendar on top of her desk gently with the tip of her wand, showing the month and date. “It’s nearly September, Harry. Teddy’s almost eleven now - he’s going to Hogwarts in a week. You’re going to take him to Diagon Alley this Sunday, remember?” 

Harry opened his mouth to speak, except he snapped his mouth shut when he remembered that he couldn’t even speak in the first place. And it wouldn’t have mattered, because he didn’t have anything to say - what day was it, exactly? Harry could now bring up a fuzzy memory of him agreeing to something along the lines of Hermione just said, and oh _ buggering fuck, _she was right. He could now remember clearing his schedule for Sunday, promising his favorite little boy that they would have the entire day together - the excitement in Teddy’s eyes while his hair turned bright blue - then the disappointment that followed because Harry said he would have to work all week to make up for it, his locks then turning a muddy yellow - 

“And the Braxton case will be covered,” Hermione said, her voice impossibly soft while she watched him try to pretend that there wasn’t a bright shininess to his eyes. “You know how good Ron is, Harry. You’ve both been partners for _ years. _ He can handle it - meanwhile, you need some rest and restoration.” 

And with that, she flicked her wand, and the charm was broken. He let out a loud breath, making a noise just for the sake of it, before running a hand down his face. “I’m a mess, ‘Mione. I don’t even remember the last time I spent time with my godson.” 

“It’s a two month trip,” Hermione muttered comfortingly, and she’d always been gentle towards him, but there was a motherly tone to her voice that had him blinking rapidly before smiling weakly. She slid the parchment over to him, the print fine and legible and definitely handwritten by her. “You’ll be sent to Willow’s Crescent - it’s a magical village north of Hong Kong in China. A good friend of mine is willing to let you stay with him during the time period. There’re a lot of opportunities there for you, Harry. It’ll be good for you, I promise.” 

“Never heard of the place,” he said gruffly, because that was the only thing he felt like he could handle saying. He grabbed the parchment and squinted at it, rubbing his eyes when the words began to blur together. Merlin, he needs to sleep.

“It’s a remote sort of area,” Hermione said cheerfully, looking significantly more happy now that Harry (silently) agreed. “Nothing like London or Diagon Alley - the wizards there rely on more traditional magic that fits their culture by connecting themselves to the nature around them.”

“Er,” Harry said. “I feel like that’s a little out of my depth.” 

“Exactly! You need something new to focus on. You’ve been working yourself to death by revolving around Teddy and the Ministry. And I know you love Teddy, I do,” she said, interrupting him before he could say anything when he started to open his mouth in protest. “But he’s leaving soon, Harry. You need to learn to live without him.” 

And that was what got him. His throat choked up, and he had to furiously rub at his face while both sadness and frustration shot through him. He couldn’t believe it - it felt like those ten years had flown by, as if Teddy had shot from a baby to a boy as tall as Harry’s stomach in a matter of seconds. He had treasured those moments, even the hair-pulling, stress-inducing, screaming-like-a-banshee kind. From time to time, Harry could see Tonks and Remus in the boy, and it only made him love him more. And now he was leaving, except Harry was regretting things because he’d been so busy this past year that he’d left Teddy in the hands of Andromeda more than not. 

“I’m so proud of him,” he croaked, and it was true. He _ was _so proud of him. Teddy was his pride and joy, but fuck, it felt like Harry had forgotten that. So he sighed, took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes, and then smiled crookedly at his best friend. “Fine. Send me away, Mistress.” 

**XxXxXxXxXxX**

“And you’ll write to me?” Teddy said anxiously, wringing his hands together before stopping and then fiddling with the bottom buttons of Harry’s cloak. 

He laughed softly, taking the boy’s small hands into his before crouching down so they were eye-level. “I promise, Teddy bear. Twice a week, always on the clock, and I’ll even send souvenirs - how about it, little man?” 

“I’m not little,” Teddy immediately complained, but his eyes were shiny as he threw his arms around Harry’s neck and hugged tightly. Harry squeezed back with just as much force, inhaling the scent of his shampoo and thinking to himself, _ if only Remus and Tonks were here to see this. _

“You’re little to me,” Harry said thickly, and he was man enough to admit that his eyes were misty when Teddy finally convinced him to let go so he could say hi to aunt Hermione and uncle Ron when they came into view as they crossed the barrier. 

“Alright, mate?” Ron said, patting Harry’s shoulder and giving him an easy grin while little Hugo looked at Harry curiously from where he sat in his father’s arms. 

Harry didn’t bother answering except grinning back at him, taking Hugo from Ron’s arms when the baby began making grabby gestures at the other man. Harry pressed a kiss to his soft head and looked up in time to see Hermione hugging Teddy while Rose shyly stood to the side, the jealous look telling Harry she wanted to do the same but was too shy to do so. 

“Stay out of trouble,” Hermione said fondly when she smoothed down Teddy’s electric green hair and smothered a kiss onto his cheek. 

“Of course,” Teddy said seriously, and Harry could barely hold back a snort of laughter when he and Ron exchanged knowing looks. Out of all of Teddy’s extensive family (the Weasleys were very doting on the boy and dinners often ended in arguments over who was the better aunt or uncle), he’d always obeyed Hermione the most, probably because she was the closest to a mother he had. 

“You’ll do just fine, mate,” Ron said next, ruffling up Teddy’s hair again and laughing when Hermione slapped his arm for messing up her attempt to keep the wild locks tamed. “Just do what me and your dad did, procrastinate to the last minute and then stay up all night doing all the homework. Bless your aunt Hermione, honestly, we would’ve flunked if it wasn’t for her.” 

“Oh, Ron, please,” Hermione scoffed, but she was smiling when he kissed her in apology.

“Have a good year,” Rose said shyly, fiddling with the hem of her dress and biting her lip. “Come home for Christmas, okay?” 

Teddy grinned, nodded, and pressed a friendly kiss to her cheek, not noticing when she gasped softly and her skin turning pink before she ran over to Ron and buried her face into his leg. 

Harry passed Hugo back to Ron when Teddy called him, and once again he crouched, looking his godson in the eyes before saying, “I’m so proud of you, Teddy. You’re going to do great, I know it.” 

“Thanks, Dad,” Teddy said, and it was that word that had Harry’s heart squeezing with love. It was strange to think that he was a father, but Teddy felt like his son - and he knew that wherever Remus was, he loved them both for it, never forgetting him but also moving on. It had Harry choked up, and he soon had Teddy in a death grip again, only releasing when the boy began to complain that he’d be late and would miss the train. 

“He’s all grown up,” Harry said, watching while the boy waved excitedly from the window as the Hogwarts Express began to move, his green hair and bright eyes soon out of sight. “I feel so old.” 

“You aren’t even thirty yet,” Ron said cheerfully, making kissy faces at Rose and laughing when she pushed his face away, saying his stubble itched. “So. Hermione told me you’ve been sent on a vacation.” 

Oh, hell. The ruddy vacation. Harry grimaced, running a hand through his hair and only rolling his eyes when his fingers encountered a knot. Just what _ wasn’t _ going wrong these days? “Yeah, she did. Some dot in China, I don’t know - I couldn’t even see it on the damn map, and it sure wasn’t because of magic.” 

“Yeah, I know.” 

A pause. 

“You _ know?_” Harry said, looking at Ron with surprise, the red-haired man setting down his daughter when she said she wanted to go talk to her mother and baby brother. The two men watched the little girl toddle away, capturing the attention of Hermione, who had been talking to a delighted Lavender Brown, by smiling sweetly and grabbing onto her mother’s skirt. 

“Well, not the part about Crescent,” Ron said, looking a little sheepish while he rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, I didn’t know you were going there, but yeah, I know that place. It’s pretty nice - they grow a lot of pumpkins, and it tastes good in the porridge they make.”

“Er,” Harry said, more than a little confused. “You’ve… been there?” 

“Yeah,” Ron said, somehow looking more confused than Harry was. How that was possible, Harry didn’t know. “Hermione and I go every few weeks because D - “ 

“_Dear!_” Hermione said loudly, suddenly stepping into both the conversation and on Ron’s shoe. He took the obvious hint, face pinching in pain, while Harry observed them with more perplexity than ever - he didn’t know which confused him more, the fact that Hermione just called Ron _ dear, _ or how Ron didn’t even seem mad at the bruising he just got, a look of comprehension dawning on his face before he shot Hermione a look of both understanding and apology. 

“Have you started packing, Harry?” Hermione said brightly, nudging Ron out of the way and after gathering the children, began pushing Harry towards the platform barrier. “That’s a silly question, I know you haven’t.” 

“Hey!” Harry said indignantly, but Ron and Hermione’s eyebrow raises had him deflated. “Whatever. I packed my toothbrush, alright?” 

“Sure, Harry,” they both chorused. 

“I hate you lot.” 

“Me?” Rose said, her eyes wide and watering and Harry felt like he could melt. 

“Not you, Rosie,” Harry pleaded, feeling a little panicked as he picked up Rose and shot a glare when Hermione giggled and Ron let out a louder bark of laughter. 

After a few final farewells, more kisses for the kids, and hugs from his best friends, Harry waved bye before Apparating back onto the front porch of Grimmauld’s Place. For a moment, he stood still, taking in the too-still silence of the wards and lack of a hyperenergetic child running around his feet. God. He’d been gone for only twenty minutes but Harry already missed his godson. 

He sighed, turning into the house and making a face when the portrait of Walburga, who had been gagged due to being an intolerable bitch the past week, glared at him with beady eyes as he passed under her and stopped. 

“Are you going to be good today?” He asked politely, years of being an Auror and having to go through countless interrogations masking his irritation perfectly. The disdainful women sniffed, nodded, and he nodded as well. With a quick flick of his wand, the cloth around her mouth was removed, and she grimaced before looking around. 

“Is the child not here?” She asked stiffly. 

“No,” he said in a short tone, because he already knew that Teddy wasn’t there, thanks. 

“Hmph.” She sniffed, and for a moment, there was a long minute of quiet between them. Finally, she spoke again. “It will be quiet without him here.” 

And when he looked up, shocked by the softness of her words, he realized that she _ missed _him. There was a lurch of sympathy within him, and he nodded silently. He hesitated when he reached for the drapes, remembering her times of complaining how dark it was whenever he did, and even more so he remembered the stories she would tell Teddy while he sat in front of her portrait when the both of them thought Harry was somewhere else, her words weaving proud tales of the Blacks and their quest to becoming powerful wizards, and how Teddy was the last of that legacy and would have to carry the torch. 

So Harry instead gave a half-smile, said, “I’m sure he misses you too,” and left the drapes open. 

She said nothing when he walked away, but he could almost imagine the quirk of her lips. 

For the next few days, Harry divided his time between procrastinating, researching, cursing both himself and Hermione, and packing. He’d already sent three letters to Hermione asking if he really had to do this, and by the third time, he got no reply and Athena began to look more than irritated when he tried to get her to carry yet another letter. He tried looking into this Willow’s Crescent, trying to gather as much knowledge as he could so he could prepare himself and whatever Hermione was trying to throw at him. 

The result? 

Nothing. He had searched from top to bottom of Grimmauld’s rather extensive library, but there was barely a word on Willow’s Crescent. The most he got was that it was tiny, it was magical, and, attesting to Ron’s word, grew pumpkins. _ Great. _

When he Apparated to meet up with Hermione at the Portkey point, all he wanted to do was to pop on back home. 

“Ready?” 

“No,” he said dryly and honestly. “If Kinglsey were still Minister I hope you know I would’ve shot down this _ vacation _faster than Ron eating bacon.” 

“He does like bacon,” Hermione said in a tone of both fondness and wonder. “And honestly, Harry, don’t be so dramatic. My friend there will take good care of you, I promise. He’s an expert in healing the soul and mind, so I’m sure that you’ll learn some very valuable things from him. You’ll even learn new magic, and maybe some of it will help you in field work.”

Damn, Harry thought with a grimace. Hermione knew him too well - the idea of a whole new set of magic to help him in work was a dirty trick to play on him, but it was still working. It was truly both a blessing and a curse to have his best friend as his boss. 

“I’ll see you in two months, Harry,” Hermione said, and she hugged him, so tightly that he almost choked. 

“I’ll miss you, ‘Mione,” Harry muttered into her hair, and he tried to take it all in, the smell of her curls and the softness of her skin against his own, because damn, this would be the last of her he would see for _ two months. _It seemed a lot longer now that it was actually happening. 

“The Portkey is leaving soon,” she said, pulling away and trying to subtly wipe at her eyes, but the redness around the rims told him that she was close to or already crying. She looked at her watch. “Five…” 

“Wait, Hermione - “ 

“Four…” 

“But, who’s - “ 

“Three…” 

“Who’s your friend - “ Harry kept trying to say, snatching at the wonky comb. 

“Two…” 

“_Hermione!_” 

The Portkey began to grow a vibrant blue, and just as he was feeling the tugging sensation within his gut, he caught her final words spoken to him for two months. 

“You’ll be alright, Harry! And don’t worry, he’s just Draco - “ 

And he was off, leaving in a whirlwind of magic and his hand glued to the comb, the dizzying sensation lasting for what seemed like ages until his feet slammed into the ground. He groaned, kneeling over, grimacing, because he’d completely forgotten how horrible Porkeys were. But his head wasn’t spinning just because of the magic and the churning of his stomach - instead, he kept replaying Hermione’s words, and thinking to himself, no way, no way, _ no way - _

A pair of boots padded onto the lush green grass, stopping just before Harry’s field of vision. Dreading what he would see, Harry slowly lifted his gaze, and boots became legs, legs to hips, hips to torse, and finally he could see a tanned face, a scowl, and blond hair so sun-bleached that it was practically silver. 

Harry swallowed, and he finished Hermione’s sentence.

“Malfoy.” 

**Author's Note:**

> hello!!
> 
> i've,,, never written something for harry potter before so i'm a little shook, though i have written in the hp world numerous times. 
> 
> this was inspired by liziqi on youtube! her channel is beautiful and i was so taken in by the serenity that she gives off that i had to make a work based on her. please go watch her if you already don't!
> 
> this will be updated randomly, so i'm sorry if i take a while. 
> 
> thank you for your support!
> 
> follow me on tumblr for more! http://redyarns.tumblr.com/


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